Sound bite augmentation

ABSTRACT

An audio description of a television program, i.e., a sound bite, is reproduced simultaneously with the display of the program at a television receiver. Specifically, the sound bite is embedded in a television signal that contains audio component and a video component. The television signal is transmitted to a plurality of television receivers and intercepted at one of the receivers. The video component is displayed on a monitor and the audio component is reproduced. On command the sound bite is reproduced instead of the audio component. An audio description of a television program, i.e., a sound bite, is also reproduced simultaneously with the display of a program listing of the program at a television receiver. Specifically, when the program listing is marked with an on-screen cursor, the sound bite is reproduced.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit of provisional application Ser. No.60/068,782 filed Dec. 24, 1997, the disclosure of which is incorporatedherein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to the field of television, and moreparticularly, to the augmentation of the display of a television programor a television program guide.

For many years, it has been the practice to transmit textual data with atelevision signal in a teletext or XDS format. At the televisionreceivers, the user has the option of displaying the transmitted textualmaterial instead of the television program. The audio component of thetelevision signal is either reproduced as sound or muted.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to one aspect of the present invention, an audio descriptionof a television program, i.e., a sound bite, is reproducedsimultaneously with the display of the program at a television receiver.Specifically, the sound bite is embedded in a television signal thatcontains an audio component and a video component. The television signalis transmitted to a plurality of television receivers and intercepted atone of the receivers. The video component is displayed on a monitor andthe audio component is reproduced as sound. On command the sound bite isreproduced instead of the audio component.

According to another aspect of the invention, an audio description of atelevision program, i.e., a sound bite, is reproduced simultaneouslywith the display of a program listing of the program at a televisionreceiver. Specifically, when the program listing is marked with anon-screen cursor, the sound bite is reproduced.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The features of the specific embodiments of the best mode areillustrated in the drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram of a television distribution systemincorporating the principles of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic block diagram of one of the television receiversshown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 represents a typical television screen in one embodiment of theinvention;

FIG. 4 represents a typical television screen in another embodiment ofthe invention; and

FIG. 5 represents a typical television screen in yet another embodimentof the invention.

DETAIL DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

As illustrated in FIG. 1, a source of television (tv) signals 2 isconnected by a data inserter 3 to a tv transmitter 4. Source 2 comprisesa plurality of audio-video programs. A sound bite source 5 is alsoconnected to data inserter 3 to embed the sound bite data in the tvsignal. It should be noted that the sound bites are in addition to theaudio component of the tv signal. The sound bite data is preferable incoded digital form such as teletext or XDS format, but alternatively itcould be embedded in the tv signal in analog form. In an analog tvsignal transmission system, inserter 3 embeds the sound bite data in theVBI of the tv signal. In a digital tv signal transmission system,inserter 3 mixes the sound bite data in the digital data stream with thetv signal.

Transmitter 4 is connected to a cable feed 6 for transmission of the tvsignal through a cable network. The cable network has a large number ofcable drops 7 each connected to a tv receiver 8 to deliver the tv signalthereto. Alternatively, the tv signal and sound bite data could betransmitted to the tv receivers by wireless terrestrial or satellitelinks.

In general, the sound bites could be transmitted in different ways. Oneway is to transmit a single sound bite for each tv program in real timeas the tv program is being broadcast. Another way is to transmit anumber of different sound bites in a continuously repeating carouselsuch that the desired sound bite is selectively grabbed from the tvsignal for reproduction at a tv receiver. Yet another way is to set up abacklink from each tv receiver 8 to sound bite source 5 (FIG. 1). Thebacklink could be by telephone, cable, or pager. The sound bitestransmitted in the tv signal depend on the command signals sent back bythe particular tv receiver. Thus a separate sound bite could beearmarked for each tv receiver.

FIG. 2 represents one of tv receivers 8 in an embodiment of theinvention that augments display of a television program with a soundbite. Cable drop 7, or other means for intercepting the tv signal, isconnected to a tuner 12, which selects the channel to be displayed.Tuner 12 is coupled by an IF amplifier 14 and a picture detector 16 to aTV monitor 18. A sound detector 20 is coupled by a switch 22 to an audioamplifier 24. A speaker 26 reproduces the audio signal from amplifier24. Digital data is embedded in the tv signal, e.g., in the VBI, as asound bite. The sound bite is preferably related to the televisionprogram. A VBI detector 28 or other means to extract the sound bite datarecovers the sound bite and a digital-to-analog converter (DAC) 30converts the sound bite to an analog signal suitable for reproduction byspeaker 26. As illustrated in FIG. 3, an on-screen icon 34, shown as apair of lips, signals the presence of the sound bite. When the user ofthe television receiver issues an appropriate command by clicking on theicon or pushing a prescribed key on a controller, switch 22 transmitsthe output of DAC 30, rather than sound detector 20, to speaker 26. Thelength of the sound bite depends on the amount of space available in thetv signal for this purpose. If desired, part or all of the sound bitecould be stored temporarily at the television receiver before beingreproduced.

If a number of different sound bites are transmitted in a carousel, theappropriate sound bite for each particular user could be selectivelygrabbed. The selective grabbing could be based on a user profile asdescribed in application Ser. No. 60/104,008, filed on Oct. 13, 1998,the disclosure of which is incorporated fully herein by reference, or onthe location of the tv receiver such as its zip code. In the formercase, the reproduced sound bite could be customized to the profile ofthe user. In the latter case, the reproduced sound bite could becustomized to the location of the user so users in different geographiclocations receive different sound bites. For example, if the tv programis an advertisement, the sound bite could be the street address of thenearest retail establishment where the advertised product can bepurchased. The sound bites are tagged with codes identifying differentthemes or locations (zip codes), which are compared with a code at eachreceiver. When a match occurs, the sound bite is reproduced at theparticular receiver.

In another embodiment, the invention augments display of a televisionprogram guide (EPG). The invention is incorporated into a televisionschedule system such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,353,121, issued onOct. 4, 1994, the disclosure of which is incorporated fully herein byreference. As illustrated in FIG. 4, upon command a program note 52 isoverlaid on a television program guide. Program note 52 relates to thetelevision program highlighted by a cursor 32. As cursor 32 moves, theprogram note changes accordingly. Sound bites relating to the televisionprograms of the guide are stored in local memory, i.e., RAM. The storedsound bites could be downloaded with the EPG data on a regular basis.On-screen icons 38 are located in the cells of programs that have soundbites. When such a cell is highlighted, the user can issue a command,i.e., by clicking on the icon, to reproduce the sound bite, eitherinstead of a program note 52 or in addition to program note 52.

In another embodiment, the invention augments display of anothertelevision program guide (EPG). The invention in incorporated intoapparatus for displaying television programs and related text such asdisclosed in PCT International Application WO96/07270, published on Mar.7, 1996, the disclosure of which is incorporated fully herein byreference. As illustrated in FIG. 5, a detail window 44 is permanentlydisplayed as part of a television program guide. The description indetail window 44 relates to the television program highlighted by acursor 48. As cursor 38 moves, the description changes accordingly.Sound bites relating to the television programs of the guide are storedin local memory, i.e., RAM. On-screen icons 54 are located in the cellsof programs that have sound bites. When such a cell is highlighted, theuser can issue a command, i.e., by clicking on the icon, to reproducethe sound bite, either instead of a program description or in additionto a program description.

To increase the capacity to reproduce sound bites with the highlightedcells of an EPG, a backlink could be utilized. When the viewer at a tvreceiver clicks on the icon, a command is sent on a dedicated backlinkchannel to the sound bite source with a tag identifying the programdisplayed in the highlighted cell and the particular tv receiver. Thesound bite is sent in a dedicated channel either with or without a tvsignal. Along with the sound bite is a tag identifying the particular tvreceiver so the sound bite is selectively grabbed only by that receiver.

Instead of clicking on an icon as described above, a microprocessorcould be programmed to initiate a sound bite in the EPG when anon-screen cursor is moved to a cell that has an available sound bite andremains there for a prescribed period of time.

Another alternative is to provide a completely audio guide. While theuser is watching television, the user can navigate about the screen witha cursor. In essence there is an invisible grid of cells with boundarylines, as in an EPG. As the cursor moves across an invisible boundaryline, an audible signal such as a beep is given. In this way, the usercan tell where he or she is in the guide while continuing to watchtelevision full screen. When the cursor moves into a cell that has asound bite, a different audible signal is given. If the cursor remainsin the cell for a prescribed period of time, the sound bite isreproduced.

The content of the sound bites can be designed to elicit informationfrom the television viewer from which a viewer profile can be developed.For example, the sound bites could be questions requiring yes or noanswers about the television program being displayed or the programlisting being highlighted in the EPG. The answers could be made bypressing specific keys on a remote controller or verbally, if speechrecognition software is provided. Reference is made to application Ser.No. 09/449,887 of Henry Yuen filed on Nov. 30, 1999, entitled “SmartAgent Based on Habit, Statistical Inforence, and Psycho-demographicProfiling”, for a description of the types of questions that might beasked and the way the profile might be generated.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for augmenting the display of atelevision program comprising the steps of: storing user profiles at auser location, wherein: each user profile contains information about aparticular viewer; embedding a sound bite component, an audio component,and a video component in a television signal, wherein: the sound bitecomponent comprises discrete sound bites, wherein: the contents of eachsound bite are related to a single television commercial advertisementand to a particular geographic location; transmitting the televisionsignal; intercepting the transmitted signal at one of a plurality oftelevision receivers; displaying the video component; reproducing theaudio component; extracting from the television signal a single soundbite, wherein: the extracting occurs in response to a command issued bya viewer to the television receiver; the sound bite is related to thetelevision commercial advertisement being watched by the viewer at thetime the viewer issues the command; and the sound bite is related to anyuser profile stored in the receiver or in a device attached to thereceiver; and reproducing the sound bite instead of the audio component.2. The method of claim 1, additionally comprising the step of displayingan icon with the video component to signal the presence of the soundbite.
 3. A method for augmenting the display of a television programguide (EPG) comprising the steps of: displaying a plurality of programlistings of an EPG on a television monitor; storing a plurality of soundbites relating only to some of the program listings in a memory;displaying an icon with program listings to signal the presence of thesound bite; marking one of the displayed program listings with a cursor;and reproducing the sound bite related to user profile information andthe marked program listing.
 4. A method for augmenting the display of atelevision program comprising the steps of: storing user profiles at auser location, wherein: each user profile contains information relatedto a particular viewer; embedding a sound bite in a television signalthat contains an audio component and an video component, wherein: thecontents of each sound bite are related to a single televisioncommercial advertisement and to a particular geographic location;transmitting the television signal; intercepting the transmitted signalat one of a plurality of television receivers; displaying the videocomponent; reproducing the audio component; extracting from thetelevision signal a single sound bite, wherein: the extracting occurs inresponse to a command issued by a viewer to the television receiver; thesound bite is related to the television commercial advertisement beingwatched by the viewer at the time the viewer issues the command; thesound bite is related to any user profile stored in the receiver or in adevice attached to the receiver; and the command issued by the viewercauses a switch to transmit the sound bite instead of the audiocomponent.
 5. The method of claim 1, in which the sound bite componentis related to the program being transmitted by the television signal. 6.A method for augmenting the display of a television program guide (EPG)comprising the steps of: displaying a plurality of program listings ofan EPG on a television monitor, wherein the plurality of programlistings correspond to respective television programs; storing aplurality of sound bites that differ from the respective televisionprograms and relate to the program listings in a memory; marking one ofthe displayed program listings with a cursor; and reproducing the soundbite related to user profile information and the marked program listing;wherein the sound bite comprises advertising information.
 7. A methodfor augmenting the display of a television program comprising the stepsof: mapping a plurality of sound bites available for later transmissionto a plurality of television programs by displaying an iconrepresentative of one of the plurality of sound bites available inconjunction with an EPG listing of one of the plurality of televisionprograms; selecting a sound bite from the EPG listing by a user;selecting a particular sound bite from a carousel having a plurality ofsound bites available that are selected based on a user profile; andtransmitting the sound bite to a television.
 8. The method foraugmenting the display of a television program of claim 7, furthercomprising the step of storing the sound bite in a user memory for laterreplay after transmitting the sound bite to the television.
 9. Themethod for augmenting the display of a television program of claim 7, inwhich the sound bite loaded from the carousel is selected based upon auser profile.
 10. The method for augmenting the display of a televisionprogram of claim 7, the sound bite loaded from the carousel is selectedbased upon a user zip code.
 11. The method for augmenting the display ofa television program of claim 7, the sound bite loaded from the carouselis selected based upon a user geographical location.
 12. The method foraugmenting the display of a television program of claim 7, the soundbite loaded from the carousel is selected based upon a code associatedwith a television receiver.
 13. The method for augmenting the display ofa television program of claim 7, in which the step of transmitting thesound bite to the television includes sending the sound bite over a backlink to a tagged television receiver.
 14. A method for augmenting thedisplay of a television program comprising the steps of: storing a userprofile at a user location, wherein: each user profile containsinformation about a particular viewer; embedding a sound bite component,an audio component, and a video component in a television signal,wherein: the sound bite component comprises discrete sound bites,wherein: the contents of each sound bite are related to a singlecommercial and to a particular geographic location; transmitting thetelevision signal; intercepting the transmitted signal at one of aplurality of television receivers; displaying the video component;reproducing the audio component; extracting from the television signal asingle sound bite, wherein: the sound bite is related to a user profilestored at the user location; and the extracting occurs in response to acommand issued by a viewer to the television receiver; and reproducingthe sound bite instead of the audio component.
 15. A method foraugmenting the display of a television program comprising the steps of:storing a user profile at a user location, wherein: the user profilecontains information related to a particular viewer; embedding a soundbite in a television signal that contains an audio component and anvideo component, wherein: the contents of each sound bite are related toa single commercial in a particular geographic location; transmittingthe television signal; intercepting the transmitted signal at one of aplurality of television receivers; displaying the video component;reproducing the audio component; extracting from the television signal asingle sound bite, wherein: the sound bite is related to the userprofile stored at the user location; extracting occurs in response to acommand issued by a viewer to the television receiver; and the commandissued by the viewer causes a switch to transmit the sound bite insteadof the audio component.
 16. A system for augmenting the display of atelevision program comprising: a source of television signals; a datainserter coupled to an output of the source of television signals; atelevision transmitter coupled to an output of the data inserter; asound bite source for producing a sound bite signal, coded in digitalteletext, related to user profile information, coupled to a second inputof the data inserter; and a plurality of television receivers coupled toan output of a TV transmitter.
 17. A system for augmenting the displayof a television program comprising: a source of television signals; adata inserter coupled to an output of the source of television signals;a television transmitter coupled to an output of the data inserter; asound bite source for producing a sound bite signal, coded in digitalXDS format, related to user profile information, coupled to a secondinput of the data inserter; and a plurality of television receiverscoupled to an output of a TV transmitter.
 18. A system for augmentingthe display of a television program comprising: a source of televisionsignals; a data inserter coupled to an output of the source oftelevision signals; a television transmitter coupled to an output of thedata inserter; a sound bite source for producing a sound bite signalrelated to user profile information, coupled to a second input of thedata inserter; a plurality of television receivers coupled to an outputof a TV transmitter; and an EPG backlink coupling the tv receiver to thesound bite source.
 19. The system for augmenting the display of atelevision program of claim 18, in which the EPG backlink coupling thetv receiver to the sound bite source links a command generated by aviewer to selectively provide a sound bite to the user.
 20. The systemfor augmenting the display of a television program of claim 19, in whichthe sound bite selectively provided to the user identifies the userthrough a tag identifying the viewer.
 21. A system for augmenting thedisplay of a television program comprising: a source of televisionsignals; a data inserter coupled to an output of the source oftelevision signals; a television transmitter coupled to an output of thedata inserter; a sound bite source for producing a sound bite signal,which is transmitted in a carousel allowing the sound bite to becustomized to fit a user profile, related to user profile information,coupled to a second input of the data inserter; and a plurality oftelevision receivers coupled to an output of a TV transmitter.
 22. Asystem for augmenting the display of a television program comprising: asource of television signals; a data inserter coupled to an output ofthe source of television signals; a television transmitter coupled to anoutput of the data inserter; a sound bite source for producing a soundbite signal, which the sound bite elicits information from a user,related to user profile information, coupled to a second input of thedata inserter; and a plurality of television receivers coupled to anoutput of a TV transmitter.